The World Cup-winning boss picked out the Nigerian stopper as the man who has impressed him most for Neil Lennon’s side in this season’s European run.

But how big a part the 24-year-old plays against the Serie A champions remains in doubt after Ambrose lined up in the African Nations Cup final against Burkina Faso last night.

Hoops gaffer Lennon insists the defender will play some part and Lippi believes that is crucial as he pinpointed the stopper as the one who could help shut out the Turin giants.

Italian legend Lippi – at the helm of Celtic’s last-16 rivals the last time they won the Champions League in 1996 – said: “I’ve been particularly impressed by Efe Ambrose – he’s a quality player and important for the team.

“It will be interesting to see what happens with him given he was involved in the African Cup of Nations final two days before the Juventus game.

“Everyone has been impressed by Celtic’s results in the Champions League this year.

“They’ve got a good young coach and having watched some of their games, the team has a closeness and a compactness that they haven’t had before. The team know how to fight for one another but they also have some good individual players.

“This is a very difficult challenge for Celtic but the first step for any team is believing they can do it. Celtic must believe it is possible and, after beating Barcelona, they have a right to believe. They must take confidence from that result.

“But Juventus are a strong side and I know they are very motivated to get through the tie and make progress in this competition. The Champions League has always been a very important tournament for the club and they’re determined to go as far as they can this year.”

The 64-year-old is now managing Guangzhou Evergrande in China as be brings down the curtain on an illustrious managerial career which saw him become the first boss to win the Champions League and World Cup when he led Italy to the latter seven years ago.

There are few people in the game, therefore, better equipped to talk about how this season’s tournament is shaping up.

Lippi said: “For me, there are four clubs left in the draw who are a few rungs above everyone else: Barcelona, Real Madrid, Manchester United and Bayern Munich.

“These teams are the favourites but there’s no doubt Juventus have quality and will be aiming to challenge.

“People say that not winning the Champions League since 1996 is too long for a club like Juventus but they need to understand it’s an incredibly difficult tournament to win.

“Since 1996, Juventus have reached three finals, all under me, and that’s no small achievement in itself given how tough the Champions League actually is. Even getting to the final is very, very hard and when you’re there, it can happen that you play well but lose on penalties or by another small margin like that.

“As a player, Antonio Conte had great ability and a great temperament – just the sort of guy a coach wants in his team.

“As a manager, I would say he has exactly the same qualities. He understands the game and makes good decisions.

“In the teams I’ve managed, you don’t tend to look around at players and say this one or that one is going to become a great coach.

“The simple fact is that you just don’t know at the time – these things only become clear many years later when they are actually put in the position. What is true is that Antonio had the right sort of character to be a successful player and he now has the right sort of character to be a successful coach.”

Lippi was still in charge when Juventus faced Celtic in 2001, a tie Lennon has spoke of the hurt he still feels over after going down to a controversial late penalty in Turin when Nicola Amoruso tumbled.

However, Lippi had words of praise for the Parkhead boss, who he met recently at an elite managers forum along with former Old Firm rival Walter Smith.

He said: “I know Walter Smith well from when we played against Rangers with Juventus. He’s a very clever coach and a good person.

“Neil Lennon is a young coach but if people think he has what it takes to achieve what Walter Smith has in the game, then it’s certainly a big compliment because Walter Smith is a very good manager.